The Humanistic Value of Proverbs in Sociopolitical Discourse
Proverbs as strategic signs for recurrent situations have long played a significant communicative role in political rhetoric. Folk proverbs as well as Bible proverbs appear as expressions of wisdom and common sense, adding authority and didacticism to the multifaceted aspects of sociopolitical disco...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2018-03-01
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| Series: | Humanities |
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| Online Access: | http://www.mdpi.com/2076-0787/7/1/28 |
| _version_ | 1819231280194125824 |
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| author | Wolfgang Mieder |
| author_facet | Wolfgang Mieder |
| author_sort | Wolfgang Mieder |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Proverbs as strategic signs for recurrent situations have long played a significant communicative role in political rhetoric. Folk proverbs as well as Bible proverbs appear as expressions of wisdom and common sense, adding authority and didacticism to the multifaceted aspects of sociopolitical discourse. Some proverbs like the golden rule “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you” (Matthew 7:12) or “It takes a village to raise a child” can function as traditional leitmotifs while other well-known proverbs might be changed into anti-proverbs to express innovative insights. The moralistic, evaluative, and argumentative employment of proverbs can be seen in the letters, speeches and writings by Lord Chesterfield, Abigail Adams, and Benjamin Franklin in the eighteenth century. Fredrick Douglass, Abraham Lincoln, Elisabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony stand out in their use of proverbs for civil and women’s rights during the nineteenth century. This effective preoccupation with proverbs for sociopolitical improvements can also be observed in the impressive oratory of Martin Luther King, Barack Obama, Hillary Rodham Clinton, and Bernie Sanders in the modern age. The ubiquitous proverbs underscore various political messages and add metaphorical as well as folkloric expressiveness to the worldview that social reformers and politicians wish to communicate. As commonly held beliefs the proverbs clearly bring humanistic values to political communications as they argue for an improved world order. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-23T11:42:27Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-873992009f254c83a1b4d3b2dae1475d |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-0787 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-23T11:42:27Z |
| publishDate | 2018-03-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Humanities |
| spelling | doaj.art-873992009f254c83a1b4d3b2dae1475d2022-12-21T17:48:27ZengMDPI AGHumanities2076-07872018-03-01712810.3390/h7010028h7010028The Humanistic Value of Proverbs in Sociopolitical DiscourseWolfgang Mieder0Department of German and Russian, University of Vermont, Burlington, VT 05405-0160, USAProverbs as strategic signs for recurrent situations have long played a significant communicative role in political rhetoric. Folk proverbs as well as Bible proverbs appear as expressions of wisdom and common sense, adding authority and didacticism to the multifaceted aspects of sociopolitical discourse. Some proverbs like the golden rule “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you” (Matthew 7:12) or “It takes a village to raise a child” can function as traditional leitmotifs while other well-known proverbs might be changed into anti-proverbs to express innovative insights. The moralistic, evaluative, and argumentative employment of proverbs can be seen in the letters, speeches and writings by Lord Chesterfield, Abigail Adams, and Benjamin Franklin in the eighteenth century. Fredrick Douglass, Abraham Lincoln, Elisabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony stand out in their use of proverbs for civil and women’s rights during the nineteenth century. This effective preoccupation with proverbs for sociopolitical improvements can also be observed in the impressive oratory of Martin Luther King, Barack Obama, Hillary Rodham Clinton, and Bernie Sanders in the modern age. The ubiquitous proverbs underscore various political messages and add metaphorical as well as folkloric expressiveness to the worldview that social reformers and politicians wish to communicate. As commonly held beliefs the proverbs clearly bring humanistic values to political communications as they argue for an improved world order.http://www.mdpi.com/2076-0787/7/1/28authorityBiblecivil rightscommon sensecommunicationdemocracyequalityethicsfolk wisdomgolden ruleleitmotifmetaphorparemiologypoliticsrhetoricworldview |
| spellingShingle | Wolfgang Mieder The Humanistic Value of Proverbs in Sociopolitical Discourse Humanities authority Bible civil rights common sense communication democracy equality ethics folk wisdom golden rule leitmotif metaphor paremiology politics rhetoric worldview |
| title | The Humanistic Value of Proverbs in Sociopolitical Discourse |
| title_full | The Humanistic Value of Proverbs in Sociopolitical Discourse |
| title_fullStr | The Humanistic Value of Proverbs in Sociopolitical Discourse |
| title_full_unstemmed | The Humanistic Value of Proverbs in Sociopolitical Discourse |
| title_short | The Humanistic Value of Proverbs in Sociopolitical Discourse |
| title_sort | humanistic value of proverbs in sociopolitical discourse |
| topic | authority Bible civil rights common sense communication democracy equality ethics folk wisdom golden rule leitmotif metaphor paremiology politics rhetoric worldview |
| url | http://www.mdpi.com/2076-0787/7/1/28 |
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